Hello everyone! Today’s Dose is a mix of health, wisdom and style. We’ll start off with CNN’s breakdown of the 10 healthiest cities in the world. Do you live in one? Should you move? Or can you make where you live into a healthier place to live? And how much is that a priority for you? Would you change cities for a job and money? Would you change cities for your health? And what do the answers to those questions tell you about yourself?

Next we’ll go to Pamela Druckerman for her New York Times article, What You Learn In Your 40’s. It’s not a depressing piece on what you’ve missed and how you failed, it’s about how much wiser you are than you’ve tended to give yourself credit for. And it’s also the era where you’ll quit trying to be liked so much , which frees you up to actually live out your own life. I loved the article for two reasons. It wasn’t the ever-popular fearful warning or meaningless regret—it’s actually funny, touching and supportive. We need more of that today. More positivity. Less focus on what we’re not good at and more focus on what we are good at. Less illusion and more reality. Enjoy:

And we’ll end with some music that sounds like it might have come from the 40’s. I’ve always liked the supportive quality that the song All About That Bass offers women, and I like that in my lifetime there’s been a huge growth in acceptance about what constitutes a healthy and attractive female form. This song speaks to that. Being a jazz guy, I absolutely love Kate Davis’s rendition and I hope you find it puts a positive spin on your day too. Have a great one:

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Remember, wherever you are in life is perfect. If you’re losing weight you won’t be happier when you reach your target. You can’t want to gain wisdom or move to a different place—none of those things are the true source of happiness. You are. Wherever you go, at whatever weight and at whatever age: that’s still you that’s there. And it’s you that will decide how good your life really is. I wish you every good fortune with that endeavour. Because you have much more control over the enjoyment of your own life than people historically think they do. So have a great one by creating a great one. Just focus on the good. It’s always there.

peace. s

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The Friday Dose is a collection of cool, interesting and surprising things that are chosen for their potential to distract you away from any painful thought loops that may currently be disrupting your sense of perspective. Focus on these and change your mind. Enjoy.

Following a serious childhood brain injury Scott McPherson unwittingly spent his entire life meditating on the concepts of thought, consciousness, reality and the self. This made him as strange to others as they were to him. Seeing the self-harm people created with their own overthinking, Scott dedicated part of his life to helping others live with greater awareness. He is currently a writer, speaker and mindfulness instructor based in Edmonton, AB, where he finds it strange to write about himself in the third person.